I've heard this but can't really search for verification. Supposedly this law forces all Chinese videogames to be set in fantasy settings. Nothing in the real world.
If this law exists I argue it should be removed. It's holding their industry back from making any culturally relevant content because nothing can be set in our world, about real lives, people or places. You'll never get a Death Stranding or Metal Gear out of China while it exists. They should untether their industry so it can produce more of cultural relevance.
Can anyone verify?
I think what you heard is the western propaganda version of the real Chinese gaming content restrictions. Those restrictions are basically to do with national soverengty and history. It kind of makes sense the western propaganda took that to create a strawman that Chinese games must all be fictional. Perhaps there is some truth some devs choose this because its much easier than navigating the legal landmine of whatever the law decides is too close for comfort.
As you may be aware all games in China must be approved by the SAPP, there is a review process and only a limited number of games are approved every year. There are indeed some strict rules.
It is not easy to find these regulations in English. Here is the best translation of the infamous online game draft last year, it was retracted but it is supposed to be a consolidation of existing rules as well.
Here is the translation of that draft. See prohibited content.
Here is the current(?) 2016 edition in Chinese
Google TL
Article 25 No publication shall contain the following content:
(1) Opposing the basic principles established by the Constitution;
(2) endangering national unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity;
(3) leaking state secrets, endangering national security or damaging national honor and interests;
(4) inciting ethnic hatred or discrimination, undermining ethnic unity, or infringing on ethnic customs and habits;
(5) Propagating evil cults or superstitions;
(6) disrupting social order or undermining social stability;
(7) Promoting obscenity, gambling, violence, or instigating crime;
(8) Insulting or slandering others, or infringing upon the legitimate rights and interests of others;
(9) endangering social morality or excellent national cultural traditions;
(10) Containing other content prohibited by laws, administrative regulations or national provisions.
#2 is a pretty tough one if you want any sort of "geopolitical" game from a western perspective. The Taiwan issue is right away a no-go. Also no Paradox games.
God these are so vague that I can see it being impossibly high risk to spend millions on a title that might be rejected.
Like... Imagine a Chinese Metal Gear going through this and ask yourself if it would get through. It wouldn't. They'd find something that "damages national honour".
The work around being "never make real world content" makes sense.
I'm guessing you could make such a MG type game but it would have to almost completely ignore China and East Asian politics.
Maybe a East vs West(PDX abandoned Cold War game) could be allowed if it was stritctly from USSR/China perspective with western enemies but then again the risk you mentioned, why work on a game where you're not even allowed to make somewhat equal or a challenging opponenent.
If you want a USSR sim city i.e a cakewalk "strategy" game, you wouldn't make a grand strategy/political game?
Perhaps paradoxically, I like rules. Not all rules, I like very specific rules. It may seem ticky tacky but I like rules like: "it will be in violation of this noise ordinance to originate sound measured at 85 Db as measured anywhere on any adjacent property line between the hours of 9pm and 7am."
That's not to say that those kinds of rules can't be abused, but they're specific and measurable, and within a just system abuses can be remedied.
Specific rules and good faith arbitration result in a fair system to live within. Vague rules that allow for too much interpretation invite corruption.
AFAIK the only PDX game that is banned is HOI4,
which was also only banned because waking the tiger removed the Chinese Cores from TibetHOI4 was banned on Nov 1, 2017 for not following the previously cited law. China never had cores on Tibet so that is probably how it violated clause 2. My guess is that it was allowed beforehand because it was so niche no one noticed.
Which is insanely a-historical incidentally.
I kinda get it, the liberation of Tibet was 1950 and the game has a hard cutoff of 1948Granted with all the ahistorical shit they've added it + how loose some countries are with cores now it doesn't make sense why there isn't a focus to get coresI double checked, Death or Dishonor came out before Waking the Tiger, China not getting a core in Tibet does not track considering the absurdity of Hungary's restore the KuK focus tree.
Is that why they don't have as many haplogroup weirdos on Weibo? Fascists require maps to color in?